Could freelancing be a good move for you?

I am a professional UI/UX designer. I have been working in startup environments for over 5 years with a few different companies. I specialised in user experience and creative problem solving skills in web and mobile application.

I believe in “Fail fast learn fast”. That is why when I was employed as an in house designer, I was also doing some freelancing projects to test and improve my skills in time management, idea generation and communication skill.

This year I left the office environment to go travelling and do some freelancing on the move. Just recently I have considered becoming a full-time freelancer, but there are still some concerns which I need to address first:

1. The social aspect

I felt lonely because of the lack of social interaction. Working from home certain has benefits: nobody will look over my shoulder and tell me what to do, and I do not have to deal with daily distractions in the office, and attend meetings when I would rather be working. But there are aspects of an office environment which I miss. Sometimes I want to bounce my ideas off other people, do brainstorming, or discuss the details of a particular part of the user interface. And also at the social level, I miss being able to help others with their work, and relax with the odd bit of recreational talking.

Possible solutions:

I do not have to stay at home all the time, there are some activities you could:

• travel around in different city or country to join the community
• attend networking events to get more contacts such as Eventbrite and Meetup.com are two good platform to discover related events around my locations.
• also go to a cafe to work for a few hours, or even join a co-working space for one or two days a week.

2. Short-term projects, low quality

Freelancers are often hired for a short term project, where they are expected to provide a quick and simple solution for a low price. However from my previous experience I know that the value of UI/UX lies in the details, and benefits from analyzing user behaviours over a significant time period.

Especially when I am asked to redesign the UI of an existing product, in order to do it right I believe I must talk to developers, marketers and users of the product, examine existing data, install new analytics tools, and A/B test my theories to see if really do increase adoption and conversion, and reduce bounce and churn.

Many employers are not aware of these methods: they expect me to work separately from the team, to produce some designs, and then the contract is finished.

When I am asked to work on short-term contracts, I feel I am not doing what is best for the business, and I am not so proud of my own work, or the results.

Possible solutions:

• Write a good proposal to the employer, explaining the different stages and techniques I will use. Quote from, and link to respectable sources to back up these methods. This way I hope to convince the employer of the benefits of using these established metholodogies. (Update: I have tried this but it didn’t work! The employer has usually decided what they want *before* they contact me.)
• Use testimonials to show how others have benefited from these approaches.
• Use my website to explain the techniques I like to use. This way I am more likely to be approached by employers who appreciate these methods.
• Build a personal brand that emphasizes quality.

3. Asking price

I felt nervous to quote a reasonable price. Obviously the client wants to convince me to charge less. They think because I work from home, I should be cheaper to employ. And I feel bad to charge more for small enterprises if they do not have enough budget for the design.

But at the same time, they are not paying for office space for me, they do not provide me with equipment and they are not giving me staff benefits like health insurance. Because these are costs I must cover myself, I do need to ask for a reasonable price.

Possible solutions:

• After reading articles from the Nu School, I gained confidence and boldness to name a figure that I thought was appropriate.
• Research your competitors’ niche, location and rates. Make a note of what niches they do not cover, there are the gaps that you can fill.

So, could freelancing be a good move for you? Yes, if you are considering it, you should give it a try. You may find yourself hooked by the freedom and control.

You can always make a change or solution to fix the problems, just make sure you are driven, confident and independent to find the actual work that you are enthusiastic about.